The subject matter herein relates generally to electronic devices and methods of manufacturing electronic devices.
Electronic devices typically include conductors that electrically connect components of the electronic device. Some electronic devices have circuit boards with conductive traces deposited on the substrate as a conductive layer in a predefined pattern or layout. Contacts or wires may be terminated to the traces, such as by spring contact, soldering or the like. Conventional circuit boards have good wear properties and are not readily damaged during mating or unmating of the contacts.
However, some electronic devices have been proposed that are manufactured by printing conductive ink on the substrate and then possibly plating the conductive ink to increase the current carrying capacity of the conductive circuits. Circuit traces manufactured as such are susceptible to wear or damage from scraping by the contacts when mated to or unmated from such traces. Additionally, some electronic devices have been proposed that provide circuit traces without the use of traditional circuit boards by printing the conductive ink traces directly onto another substrate, such as a case or housing of the electronic device, which may reduce the overall size of the electronic devices.
A need remains for an electronic device that includes durable circuit traces for mating and/or unmating of contacts thereto.